Forum Archive

I’m looking seriously at buying a 2 family property in Prospect Heights, which includes a 3-story 2 Family in the front, and has a 2nd 2-story house in the back. While the back house is legally registered with the Dept. of Housing and Preservation, it’s not listed on the C of O, and thus from what I’ve heard from brokers, it won’t be used in the appraisers assessment of the value.

Based on this limited info, an appraiser allied with the broker I’m talking to thinks that the property will appraise for 950 – 1mil. The asking price is 1.2 million and the owner is firm – though would owner finance the portion of the price beyond what the bank will lend for the appraisal. So if the bank appraised at 950k, I would end up borrowing 250k directly from the owner.

Based on the projected rent roll (I would occupy and rent) for a 2 bedroom, plus a 3-bedroom duplex, plus a 3-bedroom standalone duplex house, I feel comfortable that I will be able to cover the mortgage (split between the bank mortgage and the owner financed mortgage. I’m concerned, however, about resale. Does anyone have any experience getting a standalone backyard structure added as an extra “family”? Can anyone recommend a contractor/architect/appraiser that I could discuss this with? I’m happy to pay to speak to someone or have them walk through.

To sum it up – I’m interested in how I could get a property zoned in such a way that it would be sure to appraise for enough money to cover a mortgage in the 1.2mil plus range.